A-3195

Establishes pilot program in DOE to recruit and match minority men to teach in certain failing schools under alternate route program.

NJEA supports A-3195 (Lampitt, Singleton, Mainor, Watson Coleman, Sumter). This bill would establish a pilot program in the NJ Department of Education to recruit and match minority men to teach in certain failing schools under the alternate route program.

Under the bill, the Commissioner of Education would choose six schools from around the state to participate in the program. The legislation would not change the requirements for the alternate route program; instead it would create a pilot to recruit minority men to participate in the program.

Schools, especially elementary schools, are traditionally filled with female teachers. Many students today come from single parent homes headed by women. It is especially important that these students have the opportunity to see and work with male role models at school. This bill will help achieve that goal.

NJEA requests, however, that the terminology of “failing schools” be updated to match the current terms that denote schools with low test scores, namely “focus schools “ and/or “priority schools.”